Whom do you want us to talk to?
Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign is asking reporters for advice about which outlet she should choose for her first sit-down interview as the Democratic presidential nominee, which the Californian has said she hopes to schedule by the end of this month.
Harris — who became the Democratic standard-bearer after President Biden announced July 21 that he would not seek a second term — has yet to do a formal one-on-one and has not released a comprehensive policy agenda.
According to Politico, which reported on the contacts between the Harris campaign and media members, TV producers have reached out on behalf of “big-name anchors” to make the case for their talent to be tapped to grill the veep.
The report added that the campaign has been riven by disagreement over the outlet, timing and format of the future interview.
One view being pushed is to put Harris in the spotlight in front of a major anchor, but the VP herself has shown disagreement with needing to do a “showy” sit-down, according to Politico.
Deploying her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, to do solo spots could also be a liability, reportedly due to concerns he may not be fully read in on Harris’ (light) policy agenda.
“I’ve talked to my team,” Harris told reporters Aug. 8. “I want us to get an interview scheduled before the end of the month.”
Harris’ team did not respond to an inquiry from The Post Tuesday about interview plans, but campaign chair Jen O’Malley Dillon reiterated as recently as Thursday last week that Harris was “going to do an interview by the end of the month.”
The lack of media access to Harris has been reminiscent of Biden’s presidency, in which the 81-year-old commander-in-chief shied away from having many press conferences, and called on pre-selected reporters when he did hold them.
During Harris’ vice presidency, her team has also been careful to manage her media interactions, even calling reporters to try to learn their questions ahead of off-the-record gaggles on Air Force Two, despite the fact that anything Harris says on those occasions cannot be reported.
